Chapter 167: Storm (Part Two) - Seeking Subscriptions and Tickets

Hearing the gunshot through the telephone, Lu Kun sprang out of his chair as if propelled by a spring.

"Could that fellow Stone have just been blasted away like that?" Panic surged through Lu Kun's heart.

A series of scenarios naturally pieced themselves together in his mind:

Stone, completely defenseless against others, had been lured out and ambushed by a hidden plant planted by the criminal investigation detachment...

Yet.

Why would those people make a move against Stone? It made no sense!

Unless those people already knew that Stone held a great deal of incriminating evidence against them, or the news that Stone had just made a fortune had leaked, driving someone to take a desperate gamble...

No matter what had happened, sending someone to find Stone and bring him back was the most urgent priority right now.

Lu Kun hurriedly called the major leaders under Stone's command, telling them to bring all their men and mobilize every resource to search for Stone.

After hanging up the phone, Lu Kun calmed his flustered emotions, thought for a moment, and dialed Stone's uncle.

"Hello, I'd like to speak with Deputy Captain Lü," Lu Kun steadied himself slightly and said in a deep voice.

"I'm he. Who might you be?" The person answering the phone paused before asking in a deep voice.

Lu Kun had met Stone's uncle several times and even chatted with him, so he recognized Lü Chaoyang's voice. He quickly and briefly explained what had happened to Stone.

"Alright, I understand. Little brother Lu, thanks!" As soon as Lü Chaoyang finished speaking, he hung up the phone.

"...".

Lu Kun had once heard Stone say that his uncle had been raised through all sorts of hardships by his late mother. Otherwise, out of gratitude, his uncle wouldn't have shouldered the responsibility of raising his nephew after his sister and brother-in-law passed away.

One had to know that back then, Lü Chaoyang was only a minor patrolman and nowhere near as prominent as he later became.

The reason Stone used to live in Ping'an Village rather than the city wasn't because Lü Chaoyang was unwilling to bring him to live in the city, but simply because Stone preferred it that way.

Before Stone turned sixteen, his uncle Lü Chaoyang gave him living expenses every month.

Although it wasn't a large amount, it was enough for him to live very comfortably in the countryside.

However, most of Stone's monthly living expenses were spent on fraternizing with fair-weather friends.

Of course, Lu Kun had also benefited from that back then. Whenever Stone's living expenses arrived, Lu Kun's living standard instantly skyrocketed from destitute to moderately prosperous, only to plummet back to destitution a few days later.

After Stone turned sixteen, Lü Chaoyang's career began to look up. Although he stopped providing monthly living expenses, he started saving up a bride-price fund for his nephew. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for Stone to pull out a thousand yuan to lend to Lu Kun when his son needed medical treatment.

Therefore, Lu Kun was certain that Lü Chaoyang would not stand idly by now that Stone was in trouble.

Clutching the phone, Lu Kun thought for a moment, but still felt it wasn't foolproof. He simply pulled open his office drawer, dug out the contact information of all the influential figures he usually cultivated relationships with, and began dialing them one by one to ask for favors.

"Ah, Bureau Chief Zhao, there's a matter I'd like to ask for your help with..."

"Ah, Section Chief Li..."

"Ah, Secretary Hong..."

After making a full round of calls, Lu Kun found that his throat was so hoarse he could barely produce a sound.

"General Manager, look, it's already..." Assistant Xiao Shen bent her arm, gesturing for Lu Kun to look at the wristwatch on her wrist.

Lu Kun raised his wrist and checked his watch—goodness! It was already past nine o'clock in the evening.

Then he remembered, the young woman seemed to have something to tell him that afternoon. At the time, Lu Kun had been frantically making calls, running off his feet, so how could he possibly have time for her? He had directly barked at her and driven her out.

Thinking about it now, the girl had most likely wanted to remind him that it was already time to get off work.

"Alright, you've worked hard all day too. You can head home first. It's been a tiring day for you as well."

Lu Kun forced himself to perk up, squeezing a few smiles onto his fatigued face as he said half-heartedly.

"Then... General Manager, you should head home early too."

Noticing that Lu Kun's mental state seemed somewhat abnormal today, Assistant Xiao Shen bit her lip, whispered a soft acknowledgement, and retreated.

Lu Kun unscrewed the lid of his thermos cup, gulped down the wolfberry and chrysanthemum tea until it was completely empty, and then began packing his things in preparation to go home.

...

At home.

Under the hazy, dim lighting, Liu Liping sat on the sofa, her eyes half-closed as she nodded off.

The instant Lu Kun inserted the key into the keyhole, Liu Liping snapped awake.

"You're back?" A hint of joy appeared on Liu Liping's face as she hurried over to take the briefcase from Lu Kun's hand.

"Yeah," Lu Kun replied softly, then asked, "Where are the kids?"

"They're all asleep. By the way, what's wrong with your voice? Weren't you doing just fine when you went out today?" Liu Liping asked, puzzled.

"Oh, nothing much. Talking too much will do that. You know how it is, it's just my old ailment," Lu Kun said with a weary smile.

"Go wash up and eat first. I've kept it warm for you, right there in the pot," Liu Liping didn't press further and smiled at Lu Kun.

"Alright, thank you, Madam Wife," Lu Kun tossed his suit jacket directly onto the sofa and walked toward the dining table.

...

After finishing his meal, Lu Kun took a wonderful hot shower and lay down in bed with his wife.

"Did something happen today?" Liu Liping's sixth sense was quite sharp. After hesitating for a moment, she nudged Lu Kun with her elbow and asked.

"This..." Lu Kun hesitated, wondering whether he should tell Liu Liping the truth.

"Don't keep secrets from me," Liu Liping looked straight into Lu Kun's eyes and said earnestly.

...

"Brother Stone might be in trouble," Lu Kun blinked his eyelids rapidly for a moment, thought it over, and decided to tell the truth after all.

"Ah?" Liu Liping almost let out a gasp.

Lu Kun told her everything that had happened today, detail by detail.

"Honey, Brother Stone helped our family a lot in the past. We certainly can't stand by and do nothing in a situation like this," Liu Liping said after a brief thought.

"I was running around all afternoon precisely for his sake," Lu Kun smiled wryly and said.

"When I was little, I was small and short. A whole gang of older kids in the village chased after me and bullied me every day, constantly calling me the little whelp of a landlord and a seed of destruction. If it hadn't been for Stone's help back then, I never could have beaten them..." Lu Kun said, his voice choking slightly with emotion.

"Rest assured, Brother Stone has a benevolent nature and will be blessed; he'll be fine," Liu Liping patted Lu Kun's back to comfort him.

"I didn't say he's definitely done for. That kid has been the little tyrant of the village since he was small, and he's never taken a loss in a fight! Even if he ran into the real deal this time, I refuse to believe he'd just vanish like that. At worst, he'll just sustain a few minor injuries..."

Lu Kun muttered to himself, trying to convince himself that the situation might not be as dire as it seemed.

"That's the logic. We have to think positively about everything," Liu Liping said with a smile.

Ring, ring, ring.

In the dead of night, just as the two of them had fallen into a deep sleep, they were suddenly startled awake.

The landline phone at home and the big mobile phone Lu Kun had placed under the desk lamp were practically ringing off the hook!